Now that AT&T is actually laying down fiber-optic line in Austin, we have yet anotherreason to be jealous of Texas' weird city. According to Ma Bell, "tens of thousands" will be getting 300Mbps downloads (and uploads), the "fastest internet speeds available" in town to the general public, come December. Those subscribers can snag a free upgrade to gigabit service -- GigaPower, as the company calls it -- when it's available in the middle of next year. Oh, and if you want a say in where the ultra-fast service travels, make your neighborhood proud by voting at AT&T's website. For some reason though, we don't imagine Google will be casting any ballots.

AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 1, 2013 -- Austin, get ready to binge watch television and download shows in seconds, wipe out your online gaming opponents before they see you coming, and communicate with business associates through a high quality video conference call.

These benefits and more won't be "weird" in Austin as the city gears up for the fastest consumer broadband speeds it's ever seen.

AT&T* (NYSE: T) announced today it has begun deployment of a 100 percent fiber Internet broadband network in Austin that will deliver speeds up to 1 Gigabit per second. AT&T plans to begin delivering AT&T U-verse® with GigaPowerSM, the city's fastest Internet available to consumers, along with more advanced TV services and features, in December.

"Austin embodies innovation and social consciousness, and is the heart of a vibrant, ever-evolving tech culture and entrepreneurial spirit," said Dave Nichols, President – AT&T Texas. "With our all-fiber U-verse services, we are building the foundation for a new wave of innovation for Austin's consumers, businesses, and civic and educational institutions. It's about engaging the full community and empowering the city and its people with all that technology can offer us. This investment will help attract new business and new jobs to Austin."

AT&T's U-verse with GigaPowerSM service will initially reach tens of thousands of customer locations throughout Austin and the surrounding areas this year, with additional local expansion planned in 2014 to reach even more neighborhoods and businesses.

Austin consumers and business owners are encouraged to vote today at www.att.com/austinfiber to help us identify high customer demand and to influence which neighborhoods AT&T U-verse with GigaPowerSM will expand to in the future.

"This is an exciting time to live and work in Austin. We currently sit at the cutting edge of technology and this deployment will allow our businesses and residents to work, educate, create, invest, and build at faster speeds," said Mike Rollins, President of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce. "Jump-starting the actual construction of GigaPower will add another reason for people to want to do business and innovate in Austin and call Austin home."

AT&T also announced the creation of a new executive position to lead its U-verse with GigaPowerSM initiative and named Dahna Hull to the role – vice president and general manager, Austin, AT&T Services Inc.

Along with news of the fiber investment, AT&T announced it will work with leaders throughout Austin to discuss how a fiber platform can further the citywide technology ecosystem, driving further innovation to complement the city's progressive technology focus.

Fastest Internet speeds available to consumers in Austin beginning in December 2013, with plans to reach speeds up to 1 Gigabit per second by mid-2014. With Gigabit speeds, you'll be able to download an HD movie in less than two minutes.**

The December launch will initially feature symmetrical speeds of up to 300 Mbps, which will be the fastest upstream and downstream Internet speeds available to consumers from any Austin broadband provider.

Customers who sign-up for 300 Mbps service will upgrade to speeds up to 1 Gigabit per second when available in mid-2014, and at no extra cost.

Access to cutting-edge TV services that include our most advanced Total Home DVR with more HD TV streams to record and watch multiple shows simultaneously, plus greater DVR storage capacity.

Faster Wi-Fi speeds and the ability to schedule DVR recordings and watch hit TV shows on more than 30 Smartphones and tablets, as well as your PC.

U-verse with GigaPowerSM customers that are also AT&T wireless customers will enjoy 50 GB of free cloud storage.

AT&T's U-verse with GigaPowerSM complements its three-year Project Velocity IP (VIP) investment plan to expand and enhance its wireless and wireline IP broadband networks to support growing customer demand for high-speed Internet access, advanced TV services, and new mobile and cloud services. This year, AT&T plans to invest in the $21 billion range and in the $20 billion range each year in 2014 and 2015.

AT&T has served Austin for more than 134 years and employs more than 2,600 people in the city. Launched in Austin in 2007, AT&T U-verse TV is the fastest growing TV provider in the United States*** and was recently named Frost & Sullivan's Video Company of the Year. AT&T has been recognized by RootMetrics as No. 1 in Austin for strongest call/text/data performance on its wireless network.

More details on U-verse with GigaPowerSM pricing and availability will be announced closer to the December 2013 launch. For more information, visit www.att.com/austinfiber.

Geographic and service restrictions apply to all AT&T U-verse services.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

**Download speed based on receiving maximum 1Gbps connection speed. Speeds are not guaranteed and may vary based on internet factors including site traffic, content provider server capacity, and use of other U-verse services.

*** Claim based on comparison of major TV providers' percentage growth in subscriber counts and national market share data in 2Q2013.